Published at 3rd of December 2020 10:26:21 AM
Chapter 314
I thought about what we would do next as we walked down the hallway .
First, we had to get rid of the Nova . This was to prevent anyone else from being summoned to this world .
The Estarosta Karma had told us that the Nova was located at the Hill of Mist . This was incredibly valuable information .
However, there were a number of problems regarding the method of getting rid of it . Perhaps we could just destroy it by force, but this thing was affected by the dragon vein and other worlds . Who knew what could happen .
We weren’t exactly the right people to deal with that kind of thing . And so I wasn’t sure what we should do .
“Asagi . We should hurry . Three hours is not as long as you might think . ”
“Right . And we don’t know what could happen on the way . ”
Daniela’s voice brought me back to the present . Surely we wouldn’t be attacked on the way? We had killed everyone . There was no one left . Still, it would be best to leave as quickly as possible .
We went out of the hatch and left the destroyed facility behind us and continued through Estarosta . The roads were wrecked, the buildings collapsed, and the tower was in a pitiful condition . On top of that, there were goblin corpses all over the place .
“So, this is the end of a once-great city . It’s kind of sad . ”
“It became a nest for monsters . Sooner or later, it would have led to fighting . ”
That was true .
Still, I couldn’t help but take in the sights . I was careful not to trip over anything as we walked over the remains of a house and turned a corner . That’s when the corpse of the monster came into view . Knowing that this creature was also some kind of goblin made me shudder . The technology that the ancient elves had could also be terrifying . I suppose it all depended on how you used it…
“It really is dead, right…?”
“Aye . It is fine . ”
Daniela had taken out her appraisal glasses from her hollow bracelet . She took her time inspecting the thing .
“Does it have a name?”
“No . It just says ‘Unknown . ’ Perhaps it is a new species . Though, I do hope it is the only one of its kind . ”
“Of course . ”
The thought of it breeding was horrifying .
“Still, you did a great job blowing its head off . What a devilish mind you have . ”
“Watching Adlus made me think about the possibilities of water magic . ”
He was able to control it so freely . And so it really made me wonder . You should be able to do anything . Besides, I had Jack of all Trades, Master of None .
“Hmm . Do you think we should take some materials with us?”
“Well, it was still originally a goblin… I do not think it is worth the trouble . ”
“Right . ”
I still had other things to put back into the hollow bag anyway . Alright, we should just hurry on back . I miss the sun so much .
“Woah…it’s so bright…”
Being bathed in light like this brought me back to that time that we left the kobold mines . Though, we had stayed down there for nearly two weeks, and so it had been really harsh on my eyes . It wasn’t nearly as bad this time .
In just a short while, we would not be able to enter the hollow in the tree again . I would have to tell the others about it . It would be a disaster if someone accidentally went back in . Of course, when leaving, I used Presence Detection to make sure there weren’t any surviving monsters or Adventurers who had been left behind . Well, there really was no need to worry about that . Manager had detection magic as well .
“Let’s go then…”
“Aye . ”
I called to Daniela, who had been staring up at the Nise Yggdra tree . I looked dazedly at Daniela’s back as we walked, the snow crunching under our feet . And suddenly, I started to think about the time we first met .
I had been going through a lot back then .
She was the woman with platinum blonde hair who covered her face with a mask . I remember being quite surprised by it . And I soon learned of her ravenous appetite . We had dinner together in the park, and then we were attacked by Adventurers . I remember panicking when that happened, though it did bring us closer . Of course, that didn’t mean I was grateful to them in any way .
Months had now passed . I suppose once this snow melted and it got warmer again, it would mean that we’d gone through all the seasons . A full year since I came here . It would be our first anniversary .
“…”
There was one thing that I had been thinking about . Ever since I killed that wind dragon that had appeared near the imperial capital . The old man who butchered it had given me some fangs and scales . I had wanted to make a pair of necklaces that we could wear .
In fact, the necklaces themselves were already made . I had asked a young jeweler who ran a street stall to make them . And they turned out pretty well .
But there was never a good time to give it to her . The Imperial Sword Tournament started, and then there was the incident in Reserentrible . And that led to the goblin stampede . Of course, there were moments of rest in between all of that, but I wasn’t such an extrovert that I could just go up to her and say, ‘here, take this’ out of the blue .
“Still… No matter how many times I have experienced it, this season is so cold . ”
“We had a cold season in my world too . But it’s pretty bad here as well . ”
I looked at her profile as her white breath dissipated in the wind . Her cheeks were a little flushed . They looked warm .
“What? Is there something on my face?”
Daniela said this without turning to me, so I didn’t have time to avert my eyes .
“Uh, it’s nothing . I just thought you looked pretty . ”
“Fool . Save it for when we are back in the city . ”
She said as her cheeks reddened even further and she lunged at me with her shoulder . She always brought the pain when she was embarrassed .
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“We’re back . ”
“Finally . ”
“Welcome back . ”
We said to Adlus and Manager, who seemed to have finished preparing to leave . As they were a group of seasoned Adventurers, they were very quick . Most of the tents and tables had been packed up . The only thing that was left was our tent and belongings . As it was clear that it was in the way, I kept the talk short and started to clean up . But then again, all that meant was stuffing everything, from the table, magic tools, and other supplies into my bag . The magic lights had been returned to me and were neatly lined up on the floor . Yes, they were all there . And not a single one had been broken . Good . Good .
“I know that it’s important that you pack your things, but how about a report?”
“Oh, right . ”
As nothing had really gone wrong, I had been more focused on getting our stuff out of the way .
And so I told Adlus what had happened as I put our things away .
“…Well, what a coincidence, huh? These ancient elves have really amazing technology . ”
“So, that means another similar stampede could occur again… We’ll have to keep that in mind . ”
“But light elves are able to access the ancient elf terminals, so I’m sure you’ll be fine . ”
“No, that might not be much help . ”
“Huh?”
I stopped what I was doing and turned to look at Adlus . Wasn’t he a light elf?
“There have been many tribes of elves after the ancient elves . And there is more to it than just color . We light elves are not all the same . ”
“I see . Is that like how Daniela’s name is Villesilf, and yours is Brasilf?”
“Aye . We are different . Perhaps Daniela is able to access it because her race and family just happen to be related to the ancient elf bloodline . ”
“…Ah . ”
That reminded me of something Daniela had said about her past . Her deceased mother had been a shrine maiden, I think… I didn’t know any details, but perhaps that was related to all of this .
“Did you just think of something?”
“Sorta . I’ll have to talk to Daniela about it . But you might be right, Adlus . It would probably best that you don’t go around raiding ancient ruins . ”
“I see . Well, it’s not exactly a common occurrence…”
You never knew what you would find . These ancient elven ruins were filled with mystery . However, I felt that the Karma would always help us in their own way . That was a nice thought .
Stop the Nova . We would think about the rest later .
Well, there was one thing that I had already decided .
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No matter what . No matter the outcome . I would stay with Daniela until I died . Yes . That was one thing that would not change .
“Alright, I’m done . ”
“You should take this tent down then . I’ll help you . ”
“Thanks . ”
We departed as soon as we finished packing up everything . We intended to spend the night in the houses of Namila Village . I wanted to tell Felz, Marcel, and Silket what had happened . The village was now safe again .
We traveled through the silver world that was the forest . There were no monsters or animals now . And then we reached Namila Village just as the sun started to set . Adlus was walking in the lead, but he raised his hand for us to stop .
“We will rest here for tonight, and then head back to the imperial capital immediately . But remember to clean up before you leave . ”
“Understood . ”
“Yes . ”
“Got it . ”
They answered, and everyone scattered throughout the village . I was thinking about going too, but then I remembered that I had to see Felz in the chief’s house .
“Daniela, I’m going to go with Adlus for a short while . ”
“Very well . I will go on ahead . ”
I waved at her and we separated . Everywhere, the snow which had probably been undisturbed just a minute ago, was now trampled by the Adventurers . I walked through it as I headed to the largest house . As it was getting dark, I activated Night Eyes . I saw that Adlus, his scouts, and Manager were in front of me .
“Hey, wait up!”
“Hm? Ah, Asagi . What is it?”
“I thought you should know, but we have guests . ”
“Ah, you did say something about that before…”
Well, I hadn’t actually told him . But perhaps someone else had made a report .
It wasn’t really a secret .
The sounds of snow crunching under our feet could be heard . But perhaps our voices were louder . Silket slowly opened the door and peered out at us . I was the first to see her and so I waved . She looked relieved as she came out to greet us . There was a short sword in her hand .
I might have been stabbed had I just walked up to the door and opened it…
“So, that’s what happened…”
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“It’s a miracle that none of you died…”
Silket and Marcel said after Adlus and I had finished telling them what happened . But there was something in their expressions that seemed like they were full of regret . They had really wanted to be a part of it after all .
“The stampede is finished . The village is safe . And that is thanks to you two . The village and the boy seem quite well . ”
Adlus said with a surprisingly warm expression .
It was a peaceful time . I felt this strongly as I watched the steam rise from the cup of tea that Silket prepared . Everything had finished, everything had been resolved . The only thing left to do was to return to the city . I felt like I had just taken a hot bath . A warm, comfortable kind of tiredness spread from my fingertips to the rest of my body .
“Hmm…Asagi . You cannot sleep here . Hold yourself together a little longer . ”
“Ahh…I didn’t realize I was falling asleep . ”
I rubbed my eyes and stretched my arms . I even yawned . As an Adventurer, it was important to not let your guard down so soon after a victory . It was one of the important tricks of survival . But I had a tendency of forgetting .
“Ah, it’s no use . I’m going to sleep…”
“You’re hopeless…”
“Hehe . It’s been a while since his last night shift . Of course, he is tired . ”
“Good night, Mister Asagi . ”
“Good night . ”
Adlus was exasperated . Manager chuckled . Marcel and Silket were more polite .
“Good night . See you tomorrow then . ”
“We’ll be leaving at sunrise . You better be awake by then . ”
“I know… Haaaahhhh…”
“I’m worried…”
I wasn’t the kind of human being that someone like Adlus should worry about . After all, I had never been late for work .
“We’ll go later . ”
“Please leave some beds for us . ”
“Mmm…”
I had forgotten that Marcel and Silket slept in the same house as us . I tried to think back on that night, but my brain wasn’t operating as it should . Had there been that many beds…? I couldn’t even remember where they had slept . Maybe I never knew .
I felt the chill of the snow on my skin as I walked to the house we would be staying at . It was then that I went to the bedroom and discovered that there was only one bed . And so I decided to let the girls share it .
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